Gov’t shutdown causes delay in jobless numbers

Official numbers for September unemployment aren’t available yet because of the federal shutdown, but state experts expect them to continue to improve.

The shutdown closed the federal Bureau of Labor Standards, which generates economic indicators for the states.

But Bill Anderson, chief economist for the Department of Employment, Training and Rehabilitation, said personal income in Nevada grew 2.7 percent in the second quarter of this fiscal year and the number of employers in the state has increased for eight consecutive quarters, adding 1,600 businesses since bottoming out at 56,000 at the height of the recession. Real consumption expenditures have been up 16 consecutive quarters now and taxable sales have risen in each of the past 37 months, he said.

The state is on pace to restore about 50,000 jobs lost during the recession, Gov. Brian Sandoval said. Some 30,000 already have been added, he said.

Many of those, however, are jobs restored by businesses as the economic picture has begun to improve, not new jobs, and a large share of them are in the hospitality-tourism industry.

Projections are for an added 25,000 or more jobs in each of the coming two years, Anderson said.

Unemployment has averaged 9.7 percent so far this year. Actual September employment numbers should be available in the next week or so.